SecuritySpy Settings

Please note: SecuritySpy is CPU intensive. It works well with the Mac mini 1.81 Intel Core Duo, but not so well with slower machines.

Hardware Set Up

• If you are using VGA2USB, download and install the drivers from epiphan systems.
• Connect the VGA out of the Mac mini to the local input on the Aten Video Auto Switch. The remote feed should be the VGA split from the projector. The priority switch should be on "remote". This guarantees that SecuritySpy always sees a source. If not, it will disable the camera and you'll lose the feed.

Encoder Set Up

Each encoder needs to be set up with the following:

Time & Date -- check set date automatically. This helps keep movies (video and data) synchronized.
Energy Saver -- never put the computer asleep
Sound -- Be sure the audio source is properly selected under input. You may also want to mute output volume.
Sharing -- set up for remote login and Apple Remote Desktop

SecuritySpy settings

When SecuritySpy starts, it should recognize the different inputs (if not, you may need to restart or reboot; the vga2usb can be a little tricky).

• Under Settings, choose Video Device.
• Here you can choose the different settings for different devices.
• You can different frame rates and video sizes for each device
• Examples Settings:
  • video at 320x240 15 frames per second
  • data at 640x480 1 frame per seond
• You can also use Network Cameras and other web servers as feeds.
• For $125, you can bring in up to 4 feeds. With some classrooms using 2 or more data projectors, it is possible to record all simultaneously.

For Camera Setup

• Disable Motion Detection (unless appropriate)
• Choose other appropriate settings
• Specify capture destination
• One for the video file and one for the data file
• Specify schedule to use if using the built-in calendar
• This needs to be done with every camera source being captured.

 

 

 

For Sound

• Be sure the correct sound source is chosen
• Check "record sound with timelapse movies"
• This also needs to be done with every file that should contain audio.
• The video file should always contain audio.
• The data file should contain audio if you plan to offer a "data only" or podcast version.

For Continuous Capture

• Check "Capture timelapse movie"
• Specify capture frequentcy
• Example: video is 15 fps and data is 1 fps
• Choose create new timelapse movie "Every time the camera is switched to active"

For Compression Settings

• Choose the Video and Audio codec you prefer.
• Examples: Video is H.264 and Audio is AAC.

Other Settings

With this software, the encoder can become a web server, captures can be set up with a built-in calendar and a variety of other features can be utilized. This page is just the basics of capturing the video, audio and data simultaneously from a classroom presentation.

Questions or comments? Let us know.